More than 1,000 Dead in Syria After Islamist Terrorists Who Toppled Assad Clash with Alawite Loyalists

More than 1,000 people, including women and children, have been killed in Syria as its new Islamist rulers clash with loyalists of the toppled Assad regime, marking one of the country’s most violent episodes since the conflict began there 14 years ago.

About 745 civilians from the Alawite minority have reportedly been killed since Thursday, March 6, when violence broke out between security forces for the ruling Sunni Islamist insurgent group and supporters of ex-President Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite himself.

The government said it was responding to attacks from remnants of the ousted president’s forces and blamed “individual actions” for the rampant violence.

It responded with a major counter-operation, attacking with helicopter gunships, drones, and artillery, and resulting in what Alawites have called “revenge killings” that included hundreds of civilians, according to reports.

An estimated 148 pro-Assad fighters and 125 security forces members were among the casualties, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog group. 

Alawite people told American media that, in addition to the killings, many of their homes were looted and set on fire in different neighborhoods near the western coast of Syria. (NYP/VFI News)

“Our Heavenly Father, we pray for all Syria’s innocent civilians, including our Christian brothers and sisters, to survive amid the chaos erupting in their country. We pray that You give them the strength to persevere and protect them from any enemy wishing to harm them. We pray in Yeshua's Name that You deliver them from all their troubles and give them wise leaders who seek Your will above all. We send our heartfelt condolences to all who have lost family members during this tragic ordeal and we pray that You comfort them.”